Bird Squad
by admiraljoshhar
Summary: Bird squad, an elite Clone unit under Jedi General Jade Rellik, must decide weather or not to follow Order 66, and must face the consequences of their decision. Includes Ahsoka, Rex, and Fives later on.
1. Chapter 1: Order 66

Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Bird Squad (an Order 66 story)

Dramatis Personae:

Jade Rellik- Human Male, Jedi Knight,Former General of the Grand Army of the Republic(GAR

Captain Hawk- Human Male (Clone), CO of Bird squad, 552nd Legion (detached duty), GAR

Sergeant Eagle- Human Male (Clone), XO of Bird Squad, 552nd (dd), GAR

Cardinal- Human Male (Clone), Bird Squad Heavy Artillery, 552nd (dd), GAR

Sparrow- Human Male (Clone), 552nd (dd), GAR

Dove- Human Male (Clone), 552nd (dd), GAR

Night Owl- Human Male (Clone), Stealth Expert, 552nd (dd), GAR

Blue Jay- Human Male (Clone), Mechanic, 552nd (dd), GAR

Crow- Human Male (Clone), explosives Expert, 552nd (dd), GAR

"Pidge" Pigeon- Human Male (Clone), Communications Expert, 552nd (dd), GAR

"Peek" Peacock- Human Male (Clone), 552nd (dd), GAR

Ahsoka Tano- Jedi Knight, Former Apprentice of Anakin Skywalker, Former GAR General

Captain Rex- Human Male (Clone), Former 501st Legion Captain, GAR

Fives- Human Male (Clone), Former 501st ARC Trooper, GAR

Captain Drake Peflar- Human Male, CO Jedi Cruiser _Hammer_

Spar- Human Male (Clone), Former 102nd Trooper aboard the _Hammer_

Erik Seving- Human Male (Clone), Former 102nd Trooper Aboard the _Hammer_

Chapter One: Order 66

Clone Captain Hawk, otherwise known as CC-25834, leader of Bird squad, walked down the ramp of their cruiser, the _Bird's Nest_, to meet his Commanding Officer, Jedi General Jade Rellik.

"Mission accomplished General," he said proudly as four of his nine man squad (not counting himself) followed him down. "Zero casualties."

They had been tasked with eliminating a Separatist Listening Outpost on the far side of the planet while Jade and the other six men, including Hawk's XO, Sergeant Eagle, established their own outpost on this side of the planet.

"Well done Hawk," Jade replied, looking up from his blueprints with a smile. "Glad to hear that you've yet again earned your zero-loss reputation."

"No small thanks to your leadership sir," Hawk replied, lifting his helmet off to reveal a grin of his own.

"Clankers didn't give you any trouble, did they sir?" Eagle asked him.

"No trouble at all, or at least none that couldn't be handled by Cardinal's heavy artillery," Hawk replied.

Captain Hawk was an older Clone, one of the first produced, but he had not been present at the first Battle at Geonosis. He had, therefore, had a chance to start off with a clean slate as a squadron leader under General Rellik and his former padawan, Mek Fearen, who had already graduated to the rank of Knight and been given his own command. Under Jade, who unlike many Jedi heeded his Clone's advice, Hawk had led many successful skirmishes, never losing a single man under him, the only Clone in the Republic who could say that. There had of course been close calls, such as when Night Owl was captured and tortured by the Seppies for information he didn't possess, but they had survived, and Jade Rellik had himself led the charge to rescue Owl. In fact, Hawk's reputation had earned him an invitation to hold a Captain's position in the ARC Troopers of the 501st! Hawk had turned the position down, though, preferring to remain with his men and a Commander he knew and trusted.

Sergeant Eagle was another story entirely. Eagle was brash, headstrong, and, quite frankly, a pain in the shebs. In any other squad, he would never have made it past the rank of Trooper. But he had proven himself a more than effective leader in battle, a trait which earned him a promotion and the trust of both Hawk and Rellik. Eagle wore a distinctive set of Phase II armor, painted to reflect the bird he was named for, with a white helmet painted yellow over his mouth and nose-a "beak"- and dust brown armor beneath. Under his helmet, he wore a prosthetic over his right eye which allowed him to see better than average out of his injured eye, which had earned him his original name of "Eagle eye," shortened to Eagle to fit with his new squad, which was dubbed "Bird Squad."

Behind Hawk, Troopers Cardinal, Night Owl, Crow, and Peek removed their own helmets and sat down on the various chairs scattered throughout the basecamp.

Cardinal, the squad's heavy artillery expert, was known as a stickler for the rules. He always followed orders, no matter how insignificant, and had been ridiculed for it by his fellow troopers at first, until he proved how adept he was at handling artillery such as the E-web blaster cannon.

Night Owl was, quite simply, an enigma. Captured by the Separatists a year before, Owl had been tortured, including the removal of his tongue, rendering him incapable of speech. Night Owl had nearly been killed when he was captured, and was saved only thanks to General Rellik. However, rather than accept a prosthetic to allow him to speak again after his rescue, Owl had adapted to his new situation, becoming an expert at stealth. His unique camouflage armor usually reserved only for SpecOps Troopers, mad him blend in anywhere, allowing him to become completely invisible. He communicated now by the use of symbols and gestures, or even writing, if necessary.

Crow was a quiet one, though not always. He mostly kept to himself, but was beyond exceptional as an ordinance man, knowing explosives inside and out.

"Peek" Peacock was a flamboyant man, almost a suck-up. While he followed orders to the letter like Cardinal, for him it was not a matter of professionalism, it was a matter of looking good to his superiors. Normally, Hawk would have requested to have him removed from the squad, but the man did have his strong points. He had a sense of humor, which could often lift morale when it was low. And he was a master of martial arts, sometimes besting even General Rellik at sparring matches. So Hawk accepted him, though he dubbed him Peacock, much to his annoyance.

"C'mere and help us set this thing up Hawk," Jade said, gesturing for Hawk to join him at the command table. So far, there was only one pre-fabricated wall up, with a lead for two more walls at the end of it. Hawk didn't know a lot about construction, but he knew enough to know that the remaining walls should fit right in with the leads, and have their own leads to be filled in by the final wall, and then capped by the prefab roof still aboard the ship, which included a communications and scanning dish, the Republic's most advanced.

"What do you need me to do sir?" Hawk inquired.

"Give the boys a hand with lifting the walls in place while I steady them with the Force," Rellik ordered.

Hawk nodded, and, leaving his rifle on the table, went to join Pidge, Sparrow, and Dove in lifting the two walls.

"Pidge" Pigeon was the squad's communications expert, and had designed much of the communications network that would be brought online when the structure was complete with a little help from the squad's eccentric techie, Blue Jay.

Sparrow had, originally, been considered a failure by the cloners at Kamino, a genetic anomaly. For while he carried the same genes as the others in most ways, he was smaller than them. However, Master Shaak Tii had determined that Sparrow had potential, and requested to train him personally, paying to have a unique set of armor made for him. And her efforts had paid off- Sparrow had not only met the same standards as the other Clones, he exceeded them with regards to speed and maneuverability, and his muscular stature more than made up for any difference in size. Shaak Tii had been pleased, and arranged for him to be assigned to a Clone squadron as soon as possible, much to the chagrin of the Cloners, who despised the absence of "genetic perfection" in one of their Clones, and who still wished the "defective product" destroyed.

If Hawk was the head of the squad, and Pigeon it's ears, Dove was it's heart, it's conscience. While Peek could be amusing at times, Dove could always be counted on to lift their spirits under any circumstances. Dove was a moral compass, sometimes even counseling the General on the "right thing to do." When Night Owl had been captured and even Hawk had given up hope on saving him, Dove had lobbied the Jedi to get him to at least try to save the Clone, finally succeeding in convincing the Jedi to save Owl, despite the enormous odds against success.

As for Blue Jay, who stood next to Eagle and Jade, he was the squad's brains. Trained as an engineer, Blue Jay had been struck by a piece of shrapnel in a battle, and had never been quite the same man. The Doctors had no explanation for it- surgery had caused him to gain in IQ in some areas, notably those required for inventiveness and engineering, and lose in others, such as sociability and weapons accuracy. Rellik couldn't bring himself to leave Jay in the hands of a mental therapist or in an asylum, so he kept him on the team. And it was lucky they had, for his inventiveness had saved them on a number of occasions. In fact, the new prefab design was one of Blue Jay's, thought up in his spare time, and approved by Coruscant for mass production upon successful testing.

Hawk put his helmet on as he joined Dove on the West wall, just in case it decided to fall on them. Eagle counted down for them.

"Three, two, one, lift!" he said. Simultaneously, the East and West walls rose, supported on the bottom by two troopers each and lifted on top by Jade, whose hands were extended in a manifestation of his Force telekinesis. First, the East wall slid into place as Jade held the West still. Slowly, the three guided the East wall into position. They lowered it onto the lead, where Pigeon had already laid out mortar to receive the wall. A striker sat nearby, ready to be used to smooth the joints between walls.

Pidge picked the striker up and Sparrow grabbed the brush as soon as the wall was in place. However, Pigeon soon stopped and placed his hand to the communications antenna on his helmet, apparently receiving orders, even as the West wall began to shift into position. However, unlike the East wall, the West wall fell away from the troopers with a crash as Rellik cried out suddenly. Hawk rushed to his side, blaster drawn and pointed outward, believing at first that they had suddenly come under attack, though Blue Jay's sensor net should have picked up any intruders within five miles.

Hawk noted with approval as the other Troopers had a simalr reaction, even Jay, who picked up a pistol, though he knew he couldn't use it well.

However, Hawk was surprised to note that Pidge had his blaster pointed not at any unknown threat, but at the General himself!

"Trooper Pigeon, what are you doing?" Hawk demanded.

"Sir, I've just received a transmission directly from Chancellor Palpatine."

"And?" Hawk demanded once more. "What's that got to do with pointing your weapon at a superior officer?"

"The message was 'Execute Order Sixty-Six.' Sir," Pidge replied.

Deep in Hawk's subconscious, where hundreds of contingency orders had been buried long ago, Order 66 suddenly came to mind, and Hawk's demeanor instantly changed. For Order 66 stated clearly: "_In the event of Jedi officers acting against the interests of the Republic, and after receiving specific orders verified as coming directly from the Supreme Commander (Chancellor), GAR commanders will remove those officers by lethal force, and command of the GAR will revert to the Supreme Commander (Chancellor) until a new command structure is established."_

Hawk turned his rifle towards the General along with the others, determined to slaughter the traitorious Jedi then and there. All of the others save one: Dove.

"That's not possible!" Dove shouted, just loudly enough to make Hawk hesitate. As the Captain of the squad, it was his responsibility to execute Jade, and the others would not fire until he did. "There must be some sort of mistake Pidge!"

"No mistake," Pigeon replied coldly. As the one who had personally received the Order, his reaction to it was the strongest, the most ingrained. Actually, most Clones did not have Order 66 drilled into them deeply, most simply followed their superior's orders. But the men of Bird squad were all first-batch Kamino Clones, meaning they _did_ have the Order ground into their subconscious, especially the CO, Hawk, and the Comm officer, Pigeon. And so Hawk once again prepared to execute Jade once more, and would have pulled the trigger, were it not for a sudden interjection.

"Wait!" Cardinal shouted. "He's right!"

"_Cardinal_?" Peek exclaimed incredulously. "I would think you of all people would be in favor of following this order to the letter!"

"No," Cardinal replied vehemently. "Not this one. This goes against the Cardinal order, my Cardinal Order."

"And that is?" Hawk asked, curious.

"We don't kill our own squad!" Cardinal replied.

This broke through to Hawk, three years of loyalty to Jade overwhelming the one year of Flash-training he had received as a Trooper on Kamino. He slowly began to lower his rifle, but then raised it again as Rellik stirred.

"Why did the Jedi betray the Republic?" Hawk demanded of the General.

"I…I don't know what you're talking about," Jade replied, remaining on the ground. Blue Jay, the only one besides Dove who had never pointed his weapon at the General (Hawk supposed the surgery had wiped the Contingency Orders from the man's mind), helped Jade to his feet. "I… I just felt the deaths of dozens, no, hundreds of Jedi! All of them killed suddenly, with no warning, by their own trusted men!"

Hawk was shocked to see the General do something he had never done before- he was crying! The stern but good humored General had never shed a tear, not even in the direst of circumstances, yet he was clearly now a broken man, torn by the loss of his friends and peers, no doubt including his former apprentice.

"Dead!" Jade sobbed. "They're all dead!"

And then, suddenly stiffening, Jade looked him dead in the eyes, or at least, in the eyes of his helmet. What he said next chilled Hawk to the bone.

"Are you going to kill me now, Hawk?"


	2. Chapter 2: Decisions

**Author's Note: Okay, I neglected to introduce this story in the first chapter, but I'm sure people got the drift. This chapter is a little slow, I'm trying to move from point A to point B while not skipping out on important details, but it ends up a bit jumbled together. I may even re-write this chapter in the future, after the other chapters are written. In any case, here you go:**

Chapter 2: Decisions

"No," Hawk replied, surprising even himself, despite the fact that he had already decided to disregard Order 66.

"What?" Peek shouted, looking to his CO incredulously.

"At least, not immediately," Hawk amended. "Not until we know the whole story. Pidge, did Palpatine say why he was ordering 66?"

"No, he didn't, but he clearly stated," Pidge began, but was interrupted.

"I want you to get on the holonet," Hawk ordered. "Find out why 66 was ordered. If I'm going to kill my CO, I want to know why!"

"It's probably a Seppie trick!" Sparrow put forward, as reluctant to target the General as Hawk.

"Find out!" Hawk barked.

"May I remind the Captain that the reason the Contingency Orders are in place is so that we don't _need_ to confirm orders!" Peacock insisted stubbornly, still pointing his weapon at Jade.

"I don't need any reminders from you, Peacock!" Hawk replied savagely. "Put your weapon down!"

"If you won't kill him, I will!" Peacock shouted, moving his trigger finger. But before he could fire, the blaster was shoved towards the sky and a stun bolt knocked him unconscious in the blink of an eye. Nobody had noticed as Night Owl leapt from one side of Jade to the other, firing a weapon set to stun at his fellow Clone...

"Thank you, Owl," Jade said resignedly. Owl nodded. "You can consider us even, now. I don't hold you or any of the others responsible for my death. I can feel your sincerity, even Peek's. You're only doing your duty."

Owl shook his head vehemently at this and threw his blaster to the ground.

"Nobody's dying!" Hawk shouted, feeling he was losing control of the situation. "Crow, stun Rellik too. Put him aboard the ship and Peek in the Command tent. Maybe by the time they regain consciousness, we'll have sorted the situation out!"

Crow complied, and, without so much as reaching for the two lightsabres still clipped to his belt, Jade fell to the ground.

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The next few hours didn't resolve anything. Pidge found that the holonet was flooded with confusing data, people reeling from the announcement that Palpatine had been attacked by the Jedi, and the Separatists had been defeated, and the Republic was being replaced with an Empire, and… the details went on and on. Finally, though, they found a recording Palpatine had shown as "proof" of the Jedi's betrayal: an assassination attempt by Master Mace Windu and three others.

"Wait a minute!" Pidge said suddenly, stopping the video. The others watched silently as Pidge replayed the shocking video.

"Something's not right here!" he said abruptly. He stopped the video once more, reversed it, and then played it at half speed. "Look at the Jedi's lips! They're inconsistent with the audio! I mean, the parts you can hear match up, mostly, but there's more!"

"Ah, so Palpy's only telling his side of the story!" Sparrow observed.

"What's he actually saying?" Hawk asked Pidge, who he knew could read lips.

"Windu says '_In the name of the Galactic Senate of the Republic, you're under arrest, Chancellor_,'" Pidge revealed.

"Windu was _arresting_ Palpatine?"

The video continued, and out loud, they heard Palpatine.

"_Are you threatening me Master Jedi_?"

Again, the response was muted, but Pidge translated:

"_The Senate will decide your fate_." Pidge paused the video. "Here the recorded audio doesn't match up with the video, from the perspective facing Palpatine."

"Where are you getting this footage?" Hawk asked.

"Blue Jay dug it out of a blocked holonet archive- this was one of the first videos released, and it didn't last long. One of Palpatine's minions must have noticed the lip-reading angle too."

"So what does Palpatine say?" Dove asked.

"The recorded audio has him feigning innocence of any charge," Pidge replied. "But what he actually says is: _'I AM the Senate!'_"

"Palpatine said _that_?" Hawk reacted.

"There's more," Pidge added. "Windu says '_Not yet_,' and then you hear out loud Palpatine accusing the Jedi of treason. Windu accuses Palpatine of being a _Sith Lord_, of all things, but Palpatine brushes this aside as a mere 'philosophical difference.'"

That brought a snort from Eagle, who knew just as well as the rest of them that there was more than a "philosophical difference" between Jedi and Sith. After all, hadn't it been the Sith Lord Dooku who ordered Night Owl's torture?

"What follows is an obviously cut and pasted fight between Palpatine and the four Jedi, where suddenly three are inexplicably dead and Windu is forcing Palpatine back on a ledge," Pidge continued, now narrating events as they passed, rather than what each individual was saying. "You hear Palpatine begging Anakin Skywalker, who just happens to be present, for help, claiming he's too weak. The video shows Windu trying to convince Skywalker that Palpatine is a traitor, while Palpatine does the opposite. The next thing you know, Windu raises his sword to strike, and Skywalker jumps in and 'saves the day.' The next thing you see is Windu's dead body on the ground, and Palpatine declaring the formation of a Galactic Empire for a 'safe and secure society.' He then elaborates on the 'Jedi Plot' to destroy the Republic and take all of the power for themselves."

"You mean like he just did?" Dove scoffed.

"What if Palpatine's telling the truth, and the rest of it is just irrelevant conversation," Crow proposed.

Suddenly, before any of them could react to Crow's suggestion, he collapsed to the ground, gripping his arm.

"I'm free!" he shouted.

"What?" Hawk exclaimed, perplexed. "Free from what?"

"Sidious!" Crow replied.

"As in _Darth _Sidious?" Hawk clarified.

"As in Palpatine!" Crow continued.

"You're not making any sense Crow," Dove explained.

"Palpatine _is_ Sidious!" Crow said, stunning the others. "Two years ago, I stumbled upon Palpatine in conversation with Count Dooku!"

"_What_?" Hawk exclaimed.

"Palpatine turned to me, and I raised my blaster as I recognized his treachery. He simply laughed and thrust me back with the Force. He called a surgeon in, who implanted something into my arm, and I suddenly lost all control over my actions. Doing anything outside of what Palpatine wanted me to do resulted in anguish! He used me as a spy! He transferred me to this unit, to get a broader view of the war on the frontlines. But now, for some reason, I don't know what, his hold on me is broken!"

"I'm hearing reports of a fight between Palpatine and Yoda in the Senate Chambers over the 'net," Pidge broke in. "Maybe he had to break his concentration on Crow to fight Yoda!"

"Quick! Get whatever's in his arm out of there!" Dove yelled. Blue Jay rummaged through his gear, then ran some sort of medical scanner over Crow's arm. He stopped at the joint between upper and lower arm.

"Here!" he said.

Eagle grabbed a knife from his kit and dug into Crow's arm, tearing through the mesh beneath his armor. He pulled a small transceiver from it, and threw it to the ground. Drawing his blaster, he fired at the device, vaporizing it.

As Dove wrapped a bandage around Crow's arm, the others absorbed this new information.

"The entire war was a sham!" Hawk was the first to angrily realize. "Not only is Palpatine a Sith like Windu said, he's _the_ Sith Lord himself!"

"Sir," Pidge interjected suddenly, cupping his hand to his ears. "We're receiving a recall order from Coruscant. We're being ordered to rejoin the 552nd Battalion at 'Imperial Center,' which is Coruscant's new moniker, or so I gathered, to be processed as Stormtroopers in the new Imperial Army. Center also requests a report on the status of Jade Rellik. Should I acknowledge?"

"Negative," Hawk replied. "I've made my decision. Since the Republic no longer exists, the Grand Army of the Republic no longer exists either. And if that's the case, we have no need to follow its contingency orders! You're all welcome to join me or stay put, like I'm sure Peek will be doing, but either way, I'm taking the _Nest_- and General Rellik- with me."

"Where too, sir?" Eagle asked.

"I'm with you, Cap," Dove added.

The others also confirmed their assent, save Sparrow.

"Personally sir, I have no loyalty to Rellik," he said. "I think we should just obey orders and leave Rellik here to fend for himself, alive, we do owe him that much at least. But whatever you choose sir, I'll go along with it. My loyalty is to _you_."

Hawk considered this. None of them, except for Peacock, wanted to kill Rellik. But leaving with him, as he'd already decided before, was another. But, as he said, the decision was already made, had been made the instant they received the recall order.

"Like I said, Sparrow, I'm sticking with the Jedi.," Hawk confirmed. "Like it or not, we're now all that's left of the _Republic_ Army."

**AN: I hope you liked it, though it was definitely not my best work. I eagerly await reviews/criticism/recommendations for this and future chapters! I have a frame in mind, but I'm flexible. Tell me: What do you think should happen? I'll try to work recommendations in, within reason, of course.**

**Thanks to Sachariah and Jadedsnowtiger for their reviews! It really means a lot to me to know that this **_**is**_** being read and appreciated!**

**Thanks again for all who read!**


	3. Chapter 3: In Hiding

Chapter 3: In Hiding

_Two months later_

"That was too close," Jade said as the power came back on aboard the _Bird's Nest_. They had been on the run from the Empire for two months now, and had just about been caught by a bounty hunter. Luckily, they knew of an asteroid field nearby, the one they were now in, and had pulled what Rellik called a "Kenobi," launching bits of random debris simultaneous to an enemy missile hitting a countermeasure, and then clamping onto a larger rock, shutting down all power.

They had waited six hours, until their air supply began to run stale, before finally powering up sensors. There was no sign of the Bounty hunter, so they reactivated the primary systems. But it had been, as Rellik said, too close.

"I'm tired of running!" Sparrow quipped from the weapons control station to the starboard. It remained dark, as the first thing the hunter had done when attacking was disable the weapons systems.

"Well, we can't exactly stop running while there's a bounty out on us!" Dove replied.

"Speaking of which," Hawk interrupted further discussion, "Blue Jay, can you get us a secure holonet connection, find out what goes on out there?"

"Sure," Blue Jay replied, interacting with his console. "Backdoor access to Imperial records granted Cap'n."

"Anything in there about us?"

"Searching for Clone deserters and surviving Jedi," Blue reported. "We're on the list, along with Omega and Delta squads, Clone Captains Maze and Rex, ARC Trooper Fives, and a few others. Looks like Climber's unit was taken out early, their Jedi a little while after that. Report says Vader took them out himself."

"Vader's targeting deserters, in other words, us?" Cardinal groaned.

"No, Vader's targeting Jedi," Sparrow clarified. "The Clones are just minor inconveniences to His Darkness."

"You should have killed me when you had the chance Sparrow," Rellik said, partially in jest. No one laughed, as the remark hit too close to the mark on Sparrow's feelings.

"Here's something interesting," Blue interjected. "I've just intercepted a transmission on a secure channel from the Empire to a Bounty Hunter on Nar Shaada. It assigns the bounty hunter, a Rel Saffis, to go after Jedi Knight Ahsoka Tano and the two Clones that deserted with her- Captain Rex and ARC Trooper Fives. From what I can tell, this is a secure line, some Imp Intel agent passing on information to the hunter before he passes it on to his superiors."

"You mean…" Cardinal began, but was cut off by Hawk, who made the same realization.

"Only one bounty hunter is after her, not the entire army!"

"Right!" Blue Jay confirmed.

"I think we should help them!" Dove said quickly.

"How?" Sparrow replied bitterly. "All we have is one rogue squad that's one man short, a depressed Jedi, and a ship that couldn't even survive an encounter with a single bounty hunter without resorting to trickery, much less a _well-equipped_ professional hunter!"

Night Owl glared at him in defense of his Jedi friend, who merely lifted the corner of his mouth in a weak smile and shook his head.

"No, Owl, he's right," Rellik said. "You've all risked your own lives to save mine, and I haven't done anything yet to prove myself worth saving."

There was an awkward silence, until Eagle broke it.

"Well I for one am sick of just hiding here, waiting for something to come and kill us, like Sparrow said!" he said. "I say we go for it, and Force take the consequences and shove them out an airlock!"

The other Clones grinned at this, and even Sparrow had to admit that he too was sick of waiting, and running, as he had said before.

"Alright, we'll take a vote on it," Hawk finally proposed. "All in favor of staying here until we get vaped, say aye."

There were no responses.

"All in favor of getting off our collective shebs and _doing _something?" he continued, and this time all of them, except for Jade, Sparrow, and, of course, Night Owl, voiced their assent.

"Well?" Hawk said, addressing the three. "How about it Jade, Sparrow?"

"I'm in favor of helping a fellow Jedi out, as I'm sure you're all in favor of helping a fellow Clone," Jade replied, as Owl shook his head in agreement.

"What the Heck, why not," Sparrow finally said. "Count me in."

And, without further ado, they set course to intercept the bounty hunter on a small planet in the middle of nowhere- Tatooine.

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The ship landed in a remote part of the planet, which wasn't very hard to find, as most of the planet was bare rock and desert.

"Alright, so how do we find them?" Pidge asked as soon as the ship had powered down.

"Can you sense them with the Force, Jade?" Hawk asked his former Commander, who had insisted that, as he was no longer a General, he was no longer entitled to be called a General.

"No, I can't," Jade replied. "Like I've been doing since the Order, I'm sure she's been using the Force as little as possible, keeping attention off of her activities."

"Load of good that's gonna do us if the hunter finds 'em first," Sparrow quipped.

"Alright, we know there's three relatively large settlements in the area, we'll search them one by one, starting with Mos Espa," Hawk instructed.

"How should we dress?" Jade asked, before the arrangements could be finalized. "I mean, even out here, we're fugitives. And nine Clones in full armor and a Jedi Knight don't exactly blend in."

"You got any of those robes most Jedi wear stashed away anywhere?" Crow asked.

Jade blinked.

"It's been so long since I wore it, I forgot I had it," he admitted.

"One of us can use it to go out and buy more for the rest of us, sort of a disguise," Hawk realized.

"I can do it," Jade volunteered, but Hawk shook his head.

"Too dangerous," he explained. "The Jedi are being actively hunted. We're just bonus items. No, until we get you a better disguise, you'd better stay here. No, I think the best candidate for the job is Sparrow."

"Makes sense," Sparrow nodded. "I'm the only one of us who isn't exactly the model clone, except maybe for Owl, and he wouldn't get anywhere without being able to speak."

"Then it's settled," Hawk agreed. "Sparrow will go out and get us some disguises."

"You'll have to leave your armor behind," Dove added.

"Great," Sparrow said sarcastically. "I'll be disguised _and_ naked!"

"Contrary to popular belief, we aren't exactly defenseless without our armor, Sparrow," Pidge corrected gently. "And we've all seen what you can do with-and without-a blaster."

"All right already," Sparrow said, holding up his arms. "I said I'd do it, didn't I?"

And so Sparrow left the ship behind, bound for the nearest settlement: Mos Espa.

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A few hours later, Sparrow returned riding on a rented Eopie, the local beast of burden, and brought with him ten sets of ragged, yet serviceable spacer's gear, along with a few supplies for repairing the ship's weapons systems.

"You boys'd better be careful out there," he said as Jade clicked a helmet in place over his head, completing his disguise. "I was nearly mugged twice out there. I only escaped because I flashed my blaster to one of the local merchants, who naturally passed it on to all the others that I was armed. Some might not be discouraged so easily."

"We'll keep that in mind," Hawk said as he secured his own DC-17 blaster pistol to a holster at his waist. He then put a hat on, completing the look of a down-on-his-luck, yet still tough, spacer. The only ones of them who pulled off the look better were Night Owl and Eagle, who had scars to match their costumes. Eagle had removed his prosthetic, and instead wore an eye patch. The others sported various other looks, or helmets, to conceal the fact that they all shared the same face.

"I'll stay here and mind the ship with Blue Jay," Sparrow told them. "Wouldn't want him to mess up our paint job now, would we? Good luck brothers."

**AN: Okay, so here's chapter 3. I hope you enjoyed it. Next Chapter I'll introduce one new main character and have a cameo of a character from episode I that was also briefly in episode II (have no fear, Jar-Jar haters, its not him-though I personally have no problem with the character).**

**Thanks again to my reviewers, Jadedsnowtiger and Sechariah. And if anyone hasn't read When Night Falls by Sechariah, I recomend you do so immediatly, it's a great Clone Wars story, the best I've ever read!**


	4. Chapter 4: Mos Espa

Chapter 4: Mos Espa

"_Good day to you_!" the Toydarian said in hutt-ese as Hawk and Jade entered the small shop. He then spoke in basic, just in case his new patrons couldn't understand. "What can I do for you gentlemen?"

"I'm looking for somebody," Hawk replied. "An associate of mine purchased some items from you, said that you could be trusted-for the right price."

"Ah, your associate was correct!" the Toydarian confirmed. "Depending of course on what the price is- and, mind you, I don't take Republic-or Imperial-credits."

"I have enough," Hawk said, flashing the Toydarian an amount of gems they had brought with them from a planet called Centax Five. They had been essential in liberating the planet from the Separatist Warlord Losst Srronna, and the population had offered them the valuable gems in gratitude. To have refused would have strongly insulted the locals, so they had accepted on behalf of the Republic treasury, which they intended to give the gems to upon return to Coruscant. But that was now impossible, as they could not return to Triple Zero, as they called the capital, and even if they could, the Republic treasury no longer existed, replaced by an Imperial treasury under control of corrupt officials loyal only to themselves and Palpatine.

"Ah, Centaxian gems, very valuable," the Toydarian observed. "My name is Watto, and I'm just a simple businessman. But for Centaxian gems, I'll give you whatever you want. You want someone dead? I just happen to know a Bounty Hunter who can get the job done well, and he's quite reasonable on his prices! I…"

"We don't need someone killed," Hawk cut the diminutive alien off. "If we wanted that, we could do it ourselves!"

"Of course, of course!" The Toydarian acknowledged.

"All we want is to find someone, and keep it _quiet_!"

"Who is it you want found?" Watto asked in a quieter voice.

"We're looking for three people: A Togruta girl and her two traveling companions, twins."

Watto was quiet, but they could see in his eyes that he knew exactly who he was talking about. And then, suddenly, Hawk noticed the blaster leveled at him from across the room. A blaster wielded by a tall, eerily familiar figure in a hooded robe.

"Who wants to know?" a gruff voice asked from the robe.

"Captain Rex?" Jade asked. To his credit, the man barely reacted visibly, but his reaction, felt through the Force, was considerable. The man stepped into the light, revealing that he was, in fact, a Clone. His grip on the blaster tightened, even as Hawk surreptitiously reached for his own, still in the holster. Watto merely observed the confrontation in silence.

"How do you know that name?" the Clone asked.

"I gather by the tattoo on your forehead that you're Fives, then," Jade continued. "My name is Jade Rellik. This is Captain Hawk of Bird Squad, formerly on detached duty from the Republic 552nd Battalion's Bravo Company. We've come to help you."

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"We don't need any help," Fives replied gruffly. "Besides, how do I know you're not some Imperial or Bounty Hunter slug?"

"We don't have time for this!" Hawk interrupted angrily. "If we found you that means the Bounty Hunter will soon, and he'll be followed by a legion of Stormtroopers!"

"What hunter?" Fives asked, slowly lowering his blaster.

"His name is Rel Saffis," Jade supplied. "We intercepted a transmission from an Imperial bookkeeper or something giving him Intel that you, Captain Rex, and General Tano were here before the Intel was passed on to command, which it has been by now."

"_Haar'chak_!" Fives exclaimed, using a Mandalorian curse word he had picked up while having a drink with one of the Mando trained Commandoes. "Saffis has been chasing us since the Bounty was put on us. We thought we'd shaken him for good at Geonosis." He pulled a communicator from a hidden pocket. "Numbers to Lead, our cover is blown. We have friendlies though."

"_Can they evac us_?" came a scrambled response. Fives looked to Jade and Hawk.

"Don't you have a ship?" Jade inquired.

"Had one, but we had to sell it to establish our cover here," Fives replied.

"Where are they?" Hawk asked.

"Mos Eisley," Fives replied.

"We already have a team in place," Hawk informed them. "We can have the team meet them wherever they are, and then meet us in a hanger someplace."

Fives passed this on to the others over the comm.

"_Who are they?"_ the voice asked.

"Clones," Fives answered simply. There was a silence, which Jade finally broke.

"They answer to Bird Two and Three."

Fives passed on the information as Hawk pulled out his own communicator and spoke with the others.

"Team three is already on it's way back from Anchorhead," he told them. "Team three wants to know where to meet the others."

Fives exchanged a few words with his confederates before replying.

"Mos Eisley Cantina," he said. "Then docking bay 1138."

"Done," Hawk acknowledged.

"Watto, thanks for your help," Fives said.

"Hey, any friend of Skywalker's is a friend of mine," the old Toydarian replied, referring to Anakin Skywalker, who had formerly been Watto's slave, though he remembered him fondly. "Now about those crystals…"

Jade took three from the pack, an amount worth far more than what Watto had expected, and left.

"Always knew letting the Jedi have the boy would pay off in the end," the old Toydarian said to himself as he rubbed the crystals together greedily.

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As Hawk, Jade, and Fives entered the cockpit of the _Nest_, they immediately knew there was trouble. It was confirmed a moment later by Sparrow.

"A ship registered to Rel Saffis just entered the system and requested landing clearance at Mos Eisley," Sparrow said.

"Contact team three and let them know we won't be able to pick them up just yet," Hawk ordered. "Set course for Mos Eisley and arrange to land in bay 1138. Hopefully we can recover our people before the Bounty Hunter does."

**AN: Okay, so I shamelessly used an Episode 1 character for no apparent reason. I did this as a tribute, as TPM is in theatres now. In fact, I went and saw it the other day- Not the best 3-D movie, but it was cool to see it on the big screen. And it inspired an alternate reality fanfic I'm going to post soon, so stay tuned!**

**Just to clarify: Watto and the Birds don't know Anakin is Vader, but as we'll find out later, Fives, Ahsoka, and Rex do. Next chapter will feature Rex and Ahsoka as well! Reviews are appreciated, and thanks to those who have already reviewed, namely I'm my Own OC, Jadedsnowtiger, Jess Marylin, and Sachariah. Please review, and feel free to criticise and/or give advice!**


	5. Chapter 5: Mos Eisley

Chapter 5: Mos Eisley

_A Few Moments earlier…_

"Did he say _Clones_?" Ahsoka exclaimed as she heard Fives answer Rex over the comlink.

"That's what it sounds like," Rex replied.

"_They answer to Birds two and three_," Fives informed them. A few moments passed. "_Where should they meet you_?"

"Meet us at Mos Eisley Cantina," Rex replied. "And have them bring their ship to docking bay 1138- it's a secure port, its owner owes me a favor. Good luck."

Rex closed the channel and replaced the comlink into his belt. He was wearing a heavy cloak with the appearance of years of use, and he wore his armor underneath. His helmet and other gear were stored in a pack he had slung over his shoulder.

"So that's it then," Ahsoka said. "Do you want to come with us, Master Kenobi?"

Obi-Wan Kenobi smiled sadly, his face seeming to have aged decades in the two months since Ahsoka had last seen him. Ahsoka and the two Clones had come to Tatooine on a hunch, knowing Vader hated the planet, would not go to it. They had found Obi-Wan at the Cantina, hiding out in a corner where he had just learned of Anakin's emergence as Darth Vader and the enslavement of the Wookiees at Kashyyyk. He had been happy to learn of Ahsoka's survival, and pleased at Rex and Fives' decision to disobey Order 66 and protect Ahsoka, rather than execute her.

He had related to them his story, how he had killed General Grievous, and then been caught unawares by Commander Cody's execution of Order 66 (Rex was deeply saddened at Cody's decision to follow the obviously unjust order). He told of the duel he had with Darth Vader, and the rescue of Padme, of her death, and the birth of her child, Anakin's child, Luke Skywalker, who was now entrusted to Owen and Beru Lars, but under Obi-Wan's subtle protection. As an added safeguard, though, he did not tell them about Leia.

"No," he replied. "I made a promise to watch over the boy, and I intend to keep it. The Empire doesn't know I'm here, and Vader _won't_ come here, I'm sure of that. You and Rex go on with your new allies."

"How do we know we can trust them, Master?" Ahsoka asked, seeking guidance from him as she would a grandfather.

"I sense their sadness, their pain, over the loss of their Clone brothers," he replied. "I also sense Jade Rellik's regret at putting them in this position."

"Rellik?" Rex asked. "I've heard of him. Bird Squad, right?"

"Right," Obi-Wan confirmed.

"Captain Hawk's team," Rex observed. "Good Clone. Better man. If he's still leading them, I'd trust him any day, especially if he was able to see past 66, which would seem to be indicated by Jade's survival."

"Then it's settled," Ahsoka decided. "We'll head to the cantina. May the Force be With You, Master Kenobi, and with Master Skywalker's son."

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Eagle and Night Owl walked into the cantina and looked around. Despite their rough appearance by Coruscant standards, around here they blended in perfectly. Eagle wore a black jacket and his eye patch featured prominently, complete with the two ends of the scar that had been left by a Dark Jedi's blade long ago pointing out above and below the patch. Night Owl, though, looked even worse, perhaps fiercer than any in the cantina. His mouth was disfigured, scars from the Separatist's torture session covering his entire face, except for his eyes, which seemed to burn with a fire that melted any who dared to gape at him. Needless to say, nobody made facial contact with him.

They sat down at a corner table after Cardinal placed their drink orders. They watched the door carefully, waiting for Ahsoka and Rex. When they finally did arrive, the three Clones nearly missed them. Rex wore a Bounty-hunter's armor and was nearly indistinguishable, though any other Clone could see right through his disguise. Ahsoka had apparently discarded her lightsabres in favor of dancer's garb, appearing to be just another of a dozen employed by Jabba the Hutt accompanying one of Jabba's paid hunters. Eagle stood and approached them.

"I'm Bird Two," he said silently. "My friend over there is Bird Three. I take it you're…"

"Right," Ahsoka cut him off. "We're ready to go."

"Then let's get to the docking bay before…"

Eagle was cut off by the chirping of his comlink. He pulled it out of his pouch and listened for a moment before putting it away.

"Change of plans," he said. "The Bounty hunter's on his way in now. Our boss is on his way with your friend. We need to go _now_."

"Understood," Ahsoka said. They turned, but were surprised to meet with a blaster drawn on them. A blaster wielded by a man in Mandalorian armor, complete with wookiee scalps and a blood-red stripe down both sides as well as one stripe on his helmet for each kill. He had too many to count. This was the Bounty Hunter Rel Saffis, one of the most infamous killers in the galaxy. He had once been a leading member of the faction known as Death Watch, but even they had turned their backs on him when he attempted to kill their leader, Pre Visla, and takeover the terrorist organization himself. That he had escaped with his life said more to his skill than anything else. The man had even been known to have killed at least three Jedi during the Clone Wars and perhaps more before!

Ahsoka didn't hesitate in the slightest. She knew that it must already be known to Saffis who she was, so there was no further point in hiding. She used the Force to grab two cylinders that had surreptitiously been clipped to a belt under Rex's cloak and lit up both of her lightsabres. She was just barely in time to block the blasts that fired at her and the Clones. The Clones reacted a bit slower than Ahsoka, but to the bystanders in the cantina, their movements appeared to be synchronized. Even as the first shots were deflected to the floor, the Clones drew their weapons and fired on the Bounty Hunter. The bolts hit him, but had little or no effect on the Mandalorian iron his armor was made of.

"No blasters!" the bartender shouted, though he was ignored.

Rex flipped the table over to use as cover while Eagle ran to the back door.

"C'mon!" the Sergeant shouted as he fired at the Mandalorian, who had also taken cover. After all, his armor was strong, but he wasn't invincible. Enough shots to one place, or even a strategically placed shot in one of the chinks in his armor, would still be potentially fatal.

"GO!" Ahsoka shouted at Rex and Night Owl as she continued to deflect Saffis' shots. Rex complied, and ran out the door firing as Eagle had, followed after a moment by Night Owl and, finally, by Ahsoka herself, though she had some trouble walking backwards while deflecting Saffis' last few shots. Finally, though, she reached the door and closed it behind her.

"Let's go!" Eagle said. "That door won't hold long, and even if it does he can just go around!"

"Where!" Rex demanded.

"Look up!" Eagle replied, gesturing at the rapidly descending _Bird's Nest_. "The cavalry has arrived!"

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The group quickly boarded the ship as it reached docking bay 1138, closely followed by the Bounty Hunter. He was quick, but Cardinal's E-Web blaster, manned by Jade Rellik, just above the ramp held him off until it closed, and the ship's own armor prevented any further assault. Finally, the ship lifted off, and the hunter was powerless to stop it.

They stopped by Anchorhead to pick up Team three, and then they left Tatooine behind them…just as a small Imperial task force arrived in-system. It was led by Darth Vader himself, though he inexplicably refused to go down to the planet. When questioned, the inhabitants, and the Bounty Hunter, reported that the single Jedi had escaped with the help of what were apparently mercenaries. By the description, Vader was sure that it was Ahsoka Tano, his former apprentice. Finally, the task force left Tatooine, convinced that Ahsoka had been the only Jedi presence on the desert planet. Even Vader, blinded by his rage at Ahsoka's narrow escape and consumed by the tunnel vision that rage provoked, utterly failed to note the presence of one he would have considered a far greater target, much to the relief of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

**Author's Note: Short note here, I'm uploading two chapters at once so the longer One is in the next chapter.**

**Thanks to all of my reviewers, and I hope you enjoyed this and the next chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6: Splitting Up

**AN- I've edited this chapter slightly to fit in with my companion to Bird Squad, Memories- which is Ahsoka, Rex, and Fives' story from Rex's POV- check it out! As usual, please RnR! (The other AN at the bottom is the original from this chapter)**

Chapter 6: Splitting Up

As soon as they were underway, Hawk turned to Rex.

"How were you able to do it Captain?" he asked.

"Do what?" Rex replied as he put his helmet, courtesy of Bird Squad's spares, on.

"Resist the Order?"

Rex considered for a moment.

"It wasn't easy, at first. Torrent Company was with Master Tano on Onderon when the order came through. At first, I automatically turned my rifle on her. But then my conscience took over. I Fired at first even, but she survived. And a few of my men never even fired a shot. For this our CO killed them. It was too much. I turned my blaster on my CO and was joined by a few of my men. The ARCs mostly- they were encouraged by Masters Tano and Skywalker to develop individuality, so they knew that the Order wasn't right. Some in Torrent Company, the shinnies, particularly, disagreed. They opened fire, and we fought."

"Was it…" Hawk began, but stopped himself.

"Hard to kill our own brothers?" Rex filled in. "Very. One of our men, Sergeant Sill, turned his blaster on himself rather than to kill Master Tano or the shinnies. In the end, only Fives and I were left, and I was unconsciouss. Tano, despite barely being able to walk herself after the fight, helped Fives carry me to the _Twilight_."

"Why couldn't Tano walk well? Was she injured?"

"She seemed to be disabled by something she felt through the force."

Hawk nodded. "Jade felt something similar. It disabled him long enough for us to get a clear shot, but we didn't take it. He could have resisted an attack, though he chose not to. And he could certainly walk afterwards."

Rex shook his head. "Master Tano had it worse."

"What do you mean?" Hawk asked.

"She felt…him."

"Who?" Hawk asked confused.

"Skywalker, or Vader, whichever you prefer."

"What do you mean?" Hawk asked, now thoroughly confused. He knew Skywalker had originally sided with Palpatine, but rumor had it that the former Jedi had been killed while wiping out the last of the Separatist leaders. Vader he knew very little about, except that he was apparently a Dark Jedi, and he had been targeting Jedi survivors since the Order. He personally suspected that Vader was a droid-version of Count Dooku, much like General Grievous had been a cyborg version of the feared Kaleesh warrior. He told Rex so, but Rex again shook his head.

"You don't understand," Rex said. "Vader isn't Dooku, and Skywalker didn't die at Mustafar. Vader _is_ Skywalker, or _was_ Skywalker as Ahsoka says."

"What!?" Hawk exclaimed.

"And Ahsoka felt his turn and his pain as he turned to the Dark Side."

"I can't even begin to imagine that," Hawk said.

"It was like he put a dagger into my heart and twisted it," came a voice from the doorway. The two Clones turned to see Ahsoka and Jade standing in the doorway, Jade's hand on her shoulder in support.

"I was only able to keep from complete despair and turning to the Dark Side myself because of Rex and Fives, and then Master Kenobi on Tatooine," she said sadly.

"Master Kenobi is on Tatooine?" Hawk exclaimed. "Why didn't we bring him with us?"

"He has his reasons for staying there," Rellik replied, as Ahsoka had filled him in on the situation, leaving out the part about Luke Skywalker. Vader couldn't torture out information the other Jedi didn't possess, and Ahsoka and the two other Clones had already sworn to die before they revealed the location and existence of Vader's, no, _General Skywalker's_ son.

"Besides, now that we're gone, Vader has no reason to stay at Tatooine, and, believe me, he won't," Rex added. "I don't know why, but he despises that planet beyond anything else."

"But we don't need to discuss that now," Ahsoka cut in. "Vader now knows Rex and I are alive, and he might know about you too. We need to split up."

Hawk nodded. "Two targets are harder to hit than one."

"We should discuss this as a squad," Rellik interrupted.

"Agreed," Rex nodded.

Hawk called the others in, including Fives. He brought them up to speed, and then proposed splitting up.

"Split up the squad?" Eagle exclaimed. "Why? We've been doing pretty good up to now."

"But our luck can't hold up forever," Cardinal filled in.

"Exactly," Jade added. "That's why we've decided it's in our best interest to split up. Ahsoka and Captain Rex in one group aboard the _Nest_, and Captain Hawk and I in the other aboard a ship we'll pick up at Alderaan. Bail Organa is sympathetic to the Jedi, and has already offered Ahsoka anything she might need, up to and including a ship."

"What about the rest of us?" Sparrow asked.

"That's up to you all," Rex replied. "Fives is going with General Rellik and Captain Hawk. We need half of you. It's up to you to decide who goes with us."

"You should know going with us is the more dangerous option," Ahsoka added. "Vader and the Bounty Hunter know about me and the _Nest_."

"I volunteer," Sergeant Eagle said immediately.

"Me too," Cardinal added before any of the others could say anything. After them, all of the others volunteered except for Blue jay and Owl.

"Thanks for volunteering," Hawk said. "Since Eagle and Cardinal spoke first, they'll go. Pidge, you're with them as well."

There were nods of agreement.

"Sparrow, set course for Alderaan," Hawk ordered.

"Yes sir," the diminutive Clone acknowledged, though he still disagreed with the decision to split up.

A few moments later, they dropped out of hyperspace in an obscure system and re-entered it, bound for Alderaan.

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The _Nest_ dropped out of hyperspace on the outer edges of the Alderaan system, and Ahsoka got on the Comm.

"This is the cruiser _Bear Claw_ trying to reach Senator Bail Organa on secure Comm frequency 1138," she said. A moment passed, and then the face of an Alderaan Captain came on the holoscreen.

"Master Tano, this is Captain Antilles," he said. "We weren't expecting you so soon. Senator Organa is unavailable. What can we do to help you?"

"We've picked up some allies, and they're going to need the ship Bail promised me."

"These _allies_ wouldn't by any chance be the wanted fugitives that were last seen with you on Tatooine fleeing in a cruiser matching your ship's description, would they?"

"Of course they wouldn't," Ahsoka said with a small grin. "Didn't you hear me? This is the _Bear Claw_, not the _Bird's Nest_."

"Of course it is," Antilles replied with a grin of his own. "I'll clear you to land on the Senator's private landing platform in the capital city. Your new ship will be waiting there for you."

"Thank you Captain," Ahsoka said.

"You're welcome," Antilles replied. "Despite what the new Emperor's propaganda machine would have us believe, the Jedi have always been keepers of the peace, and friends to all of us. Some may forget that, but Alderaan never will as long as it exists. May the Force be with you, and with your friends."

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"What a piece of junk!" Cardinal exclaimed as he looked at the Corellian YT-1370 transport that sat on the landing platform next to them.

The old transport was similar in many respects to its predecessor, the YT-1300, but it lacked a few small details. However, this transport, upon closer inspection, possessed much stronger military grade armor, in addition to its powerful engines. The only thing it lacked in, besides a good paint job and hull restoration, was weapons. The Alderaanians had, as was their custom, disarmed the ship upon purchase.

"I don't know," Sparrow said thoughtfully, "I kind of like it. Gives the ship character."

"And draws too much attention to it as an obvious smuggling vessel," Fives pointed out.

"We can take care of that when we put in weapons, whenever that is," Jade said. "Until then, it flies, and so will we."

"How are we going to stay in contact?" Ahsoka asked Jade after his men boarded the freighter.

"Blue jay's set up a secure line in the Imperial holonet right under the Imp's noses. Hiding in plain sight, sort of," Jade replied. "Pidge knows how to access it, and he'll show you and Rex how, just in case. They'll follow you and protect you, if you'll do the same for them."

"The same goes for Fives," Ahsoka added. "May the Force be with you, Bird Leader."

"And with you, Torrent Leader," Jade replied, using the tag she had selected in honor of her fallen men, both those who had supported her, and those who were simply victims of a power-hungry dictator's plot.. He then turned and boarded the ship, closing the ramp, which came out of the center of the ship, rather than the side like its predecessor.

He made his way to the side mounted cockpit, where Sparrow and Hawk already sat in the pilot and copilot's chairs. He sat down in the passenger seat behind Sparrow, nodding in acknowledgement to Blue Jay in the navigator's chair.

"Let's blow this planet," Sparrow said as the ship lifted off. They reached orbit, and waved a final farewell to the others in the newly dubbed _Memory of Torrent Company_, and entered into hyperspace, bound for Nar Shaada, where they planned to outfit the ship with weapons and a new paint job.

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**Author's Note: Okay, first, I want to thank all of my reviewers-**

**Second, I want to ask a question- should I A) continue this story, focusing on the Bird's with Jade and Hawk only, B) End this story here and start two separate stories one focusing on the new Torrents and one on the Birds, C) continue this story and do only one separate story focusing on the Torrents, or D) INSERT YOUR SUGGESTION HERE.**

**I want to hear from my reviewers, as I am definitely getting writers block with this one. I have a definite plan for the Birds, but not one for the new Torrents. So again, any advice is appreciated. For now, though, I'll write at least one more chapter for the Birds (no pun intended;) ) while I await your replies.**

**Finally, I would like any suggestions you have in regards to the new freighter- what I should name it (I'm leaning towards keeping it the **_**Bird's Nest**_**), what it should look like, whether or not it could actually be a legitimate successor (but never superior) to the **_**Millennium Falcon**_**'s YT-1300 class, etc. All of your thoughts are welcome and appreciated!**

**There, I think I'm finished with my rambling. Thanks again for reading and reviewing, and again, if you haven't already, I strongly suggest reading "When Night Falls" by Sachariah, as it's what inspired this fanfic, and it is FAR better than anything else I've written thus far.**


	7. Chapter 7: Off Course

**Author's Note: Okay, I've decided to continue this story as Bird Squad alone, with more torrent interaction later on. I might do a story focusing on the other group's adventures later on, but I want to concentrate on this story for a while. I know it's been ages since I've updated, and it may be a while before I upload again- sorry about that, but I try. Unfortunately this chapter is rather short, but rest assured more is to come as quickly as I can think it up and write it. And so, without further commentary, here's Chapter 7…**

Chapter 7- Off Course

A week had passed since the remaining members of Bird squad left Nar Shaada. They were now equipped with a brand new military grade quad gun on the side of the ship, hidden under a newly mounted exterior hatch, as well as a proton torpedo launcher in between the ship's mandibles. It also had a fresh paint job, and appeared almost like a respectable freighter. They were carrying a load of medical supplies from Ryloth to Malastare, but were in no hurry to deliver it.

So far, they had eluded all notice by the Imps, and the bounty on them had even been dropped by a few hundred credits as the last deserters and a few Jedi fugitives were no longer considered a threat to Palpatine's rapidly strengthening Empire.

In just a short time, dramatic changes were already occurring on formerly Republic worlds. Where there had once been only small peace demonstrations, there were now Imperial Stormtroopers occupying planets. The smallest infractions on such worlds led to swift "justice." Trade embargoes abounded, as did the smuggling trade, but there was so much need that even legitimate businesses were in high demand to carry cargo that had once been freely provided by Republic medical teams. It wasn't obvious to many at first, but as time went on, Palpatine seemed to form public opinion around the belief that humans were more important than aliens, and humanocentric ideas that had long remained dormant seemed to appear from thin air, especially on primarily human run worlds such as Coruscant, or, rather, "Imperial Center."

The Clones noted that the new "Stormtroopers" also seemed different. Where they had previously been comradely and protectors of the Republic, they now seemed cold and even heartless soldiers, feeling no qualms about striking down innocent lives along with the allegedly "guilty." Gone were the courts and justice system of the old Republic, replaced by the swift military "justice" which, more often than not, resulted in execution by blaster. Hawk's theory was that when the Clones were forced to betray their commanders something inside them just…snapped, causing them to lose touch with their own humanity and become simply soldiers who followed orders, no matter what those orders may be.

And the most feared of these soldiers became the five-o-first under the direct command of Darth Vader. Stories of their victories abounded on the Imperial propaganda network, but the true stories over the underground network were of atrocities, slaughters against armed and unarmed civilians. In short, everything in the galaxy, it seemed, had been turned upside-down.

Jade leaned back and turned off the holodisplay, shaking his head sadly. The latest reports listed four more Jedi as dead, three killed by either the 501st or Vader himself. And that wasn't even the worst of it. One report said that the civilian population of a small moon called Darunia IV had discovered in hiding amongst themselves the Apprentice of the Jedi that had been assigned to protect the moon against marauders. They had captured him and turned "the traitor" over to Vader themselves without a fight, as the Jedi refused to kill the civilians. Indeed, the situation looked bleak if he was ever discovered to be a Jedi in hiding. He was lucky to be where he was, with friends, hiding in plain sight.

"Had enough?" Fives said.

"More than enough," Jade replied. He stood and walked over to the Dajarik table where Fives and Crow were playing a game.

"How could so much have changed in the galaxy in so short a time?" Jade asked. "Are people really that gullible?"

"We were, at first," Crow reminded him as one of Fives' game pieces eliminated a key piece from Crow's side. "Stang!"

"Yes, I know, but..." Jade was interrupted by the sound of an alarm from the cockpit. Crow and Fives abandoned their game and ran to the cockpit with Jade.

"What's wrong?" Fives asked Sparrow, who was piloting the ship.

"We've run into an uncharted asteroid field," Sparrow replied.

"Uncharted?" Jade exclaimed. "On the trade route used by millions of ships each day for thousands of years?"

"Well, I kind of actually tried a short-cut," Sparrow replied.

"You what!?" Jade exclaimed.

"No time for arguing, just follow Blue and Owl's example and strap yourselves in, we're in for a rough ride."

"Can't we go around it?" Crow asked.

"I already tried," Sparrow replied. "There's some sort of heavy gravitational pull here that shouldn't be. It's what pulled us out of hyperspace, and it's pulling us through."

"A black hole?" Jade inquired.

"Sensor reading's all wrong for that," Blue Jay spoke up from his station.

"I'm no pilot," Hawk said, noticing they were accelerating into the field, "but shouldn't we, I don't know, slow down a little?"

"A pilot on Nar Shaada told me there's only too ways to fly a ship through an asteroid field, and two results- slow and dead, or fast and maybe not dead."

"Not liking the 'maybe,'" Fives quipped.

"Quiet, I'm concentrating," Sparrow retorted as he dodged an especially large asteroid, narrowly missing a corner of it.

He continued in like manner for an hour, dodging quite a bit of debris, including some curiously familiar wreckage.

"Wasn't that a Separatist Cruiser?" Crow asked.

"What's it doing way out in the middle of an asteroid belt?" Fives asked.

"Better question: how'd it get through the asteroids?" Hawk added.

"Better question: why are you still distracting your pilot while we hurtle through a deadly asteroid belt?" Sparrow asked, annoyed. The crew was silent.

The asteroids began trickling off soon after the debris was spotted, though, revealing how the cruiser had gotten where it was- from the other side of the field, the asteroids were thin enough to be blasted through. This didn't explain why a cruiser was out here, though, or why it was destroyed.

As they pulled out of the asteroid field into clear space, they found themselves in range of a small planet, one that was, like the field itself, uncharted.

"Well, glad that's over with," Sparrow replied, leaning back and pulling his leather pilot's gloves, now soaked with sweat, from his hands. "Whatever was pulling us let us go as soon as we passed the seppie cruiser."

"General, we're picking up a distress signal!" Crow said as the board in front of him lit up. "It's on a Republic frequency, and it's coming from the planet!"

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**AN: Interesting, eh?**

**First I would like to thank all of my readers and reviewers. Thank you all for your support.**

**I would like to especially thank reviewers for their suggestions on where to go with this story. Unfortunately I can't work all suggestions in or please everybody, but I'll do what I can and hope to do the story justice. I haven't yet decided on an official name for the ship yet, as you may have noticed, so I'm still open for suggestions, and still considering the names already submitted.**

**Thanks again for reading, and please review!**


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